"Aristotle was the first person in the history of Western aesthetics to define tragedy, and his theory of tragedy is epitomized in his book Poetics, where he said that tragedy is a imitation of a serious, complete, and long action... By arousing pity and fear, in order to let this emotion be vented, "At the beginning of the new year in 2022, Lai Shengchuan, a Chinese dramatist and artistic director of the theater, rearranged the materials of the theater history lecture hall, turned the former school class into a national open class, and taught six consecutive lectures on "History of Western Theater" from January 6 to January 9, which was the first lecture last night.
In addition to the field of screenwriting and directing familiar to audiences, Lai Shengchuan is also a doctor of drama at the University of California, Berkeley, and was the dean of the School of Drama at Taipei University of the Arts. The last time he gave a lecture on the "History of Western Theater" was in 1999 at the Taipei Municipal Social Education Hall (now Taipei City Stage), and Lai Shengchuan, who retired from school for many years, has never had the opportunity to explain the history of theater in public. After 22 years of teaching again, Lai Shengchuan himself was also very excited, and the first lesson lasted for more than two hours, "Drama, there is no way to fast-forward." If you want to listen to 'thirty minutes to talk about the history of Western theater' and 'one hour to talk about the history of Western theater', I'm sorry, you turn it off. ”
This drama class attracted a large number of theater lovers. Not only was the theater filled with Shanghai literary and artistic youth, but 140,000 viewers also poured into the online live broadcast room. Many people open their notebooks and listen while taking notes, "hoping to listen to all six lessons."
Theater creates an important connection between people and people and society
The history of Western theater shared by the "Lai Sheng Chuan Lecture Hall" will be from the Greek theater, the Roman theater, the theater culture formed by Shakespeare at the end of the 16th century, the theater structure in the 19th century, to the changes of the new theater in the 21st century, etc., to explain why people need theater from ancient times to the present, and what the theater gives to the audience. Only by learning theater and understanding theater can it be possible to break through the "theater".
Lai Shengchuan's mind always asks the question, "What is theater?" What does theater do? Why do people need theater? Do you need a theater? What about a society without theater? Will there be any difficulties? In the Internet era, how can theater be integrated with the Internet? Will theaters disappear one day? ”
These questions in mind have made Lai Shengchuan and his team always explore new theater forms and insist on making original theater works. In Lai Shengchuan's creation, he has been trying to break the theater space and the traditional frame stage form, and in the audience's familiar "Dream Like a Dream" and "Once Upon a Time", the audience is in the middle of the stage, and the actors perform around the "lotus pond" of the audience, which for Lai Shengchuan is "not because of the brilliance, but because of the need".
For Lai Shengchuan, the weight of theater is not only to study and study the history of theater, but also to spend more than 30 years of his creative career in theater, and each original work is constantly experimenting with the various possibilities of "theater". He believes that a community needs a common story, and the common story is to sustain the whole society, not only by people's feelings and relationships, but more importantly by stories.
"Our story defines us. So, someone wants to perform these stories, and you might say that these stories are already in the movie, but for me, these stories, whether it's a movie, a novel or a theater, are telling stories of our time, this society, but there is a unique atmosphere in the theater. He said. For example, when you watch a play in the theater, everyone present will feel a connection, a connection with society, a connection with the audience, a connection between the stage and off the stage, which is a unique experience in the theater. From ancient times to the present, human beings use a "field" to tell stories, and the development of mankind needs the witness of the theater.
The Upper Theater was once an experiment that was put into the mall
The upper theater was built in a shopping mall, which is also an experiment by Lai Shengchuan on the theater space. It breaks the social structure behind the 19th-century theater, and the audience does not need to go to the theater as if they were on a pilgrimage. Since its opening in 2015, "Crush on Peach Blossom Garden" and "Treasure Island And a Village" have become resident programs with at least 40 performances per year. The Upper Theater team, which has always insisted on launching original works, also launches at least 2 new works every year. At the same time, the "Lai Shengchuan Lecture Hall" and "Ding Naizhu Parlor", as well as "Bubble Drama" - Drama Reading Activities; "Daydreams" - Art Salon Activities; "Good" - Lifestyle Handicraft Activities, etc., have become the "gas station" of the weekend life of theater audiences. There are also more and more white-collar workers who come to the theater hall on weekdays to participate in the "Drama Creative Workshop". "Going to the theater" has gradually become a form of life, more and more a part of people's lives.
Since 2016, Lai Shengchuan has shared the philosophy of happiness in "The Book of Water", the Italian comedy about why people need comedy, the creative process of "Hidden Treasure", the structural beauty of Shakespeare's sonnets, the methods and wisdom in creative science, the inspiration of "Dream like a Dream", the creativity of "Treasure Island and a Village", the code of urban creativity, etc. at the "Lai Shengchuan Lecture Hall"... "Lai Shengchuan Lecture Hall" is not limited to the field of drama, there are more about creativity, architecture, city, design, Advertising, finance and other fields. In this way, I hope that the drama and the theater will be closer to people's daily lives, and through this public dialogue space created with heart, it will become a place that stimulates creativity and inspiration.
Photo courtesy of Upper Theater
Author: Tong Weijing
Editor: Wang Licheng
Editor-in-Charge: Xiaofang Xing
*Wenhui exclusive manuscript, please indicate the source when reprinting.